


Pearls and Cravats

by StarlightAsteria



Series: The Sun is Waning [5]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Caius responds as best he can, Falling In Love, Love Letters, Phoebe is simultaneously incoherent and eloquent, Pureblood Culture, Pureblood Politics, Pureblood Society, Romance, Slytherin, Slytherins Being Slytherins, The Sun is Waning-verse, courting gifts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-25
Updated: 2017-06-25
Packaged: 2018-11-19 01:31:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11302965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarlightAsteria/pseuds/StarlightAsteria
Summary: Ever thine, ever mine, ever for each other.In which Phoebe and Caius write letters.





	Pearls and Cravats

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Everyone!
> 
> I do hope you enjoy this latest instalment of The Sun is Waning; it's very much focused on Caius and Phoebe, and is a slightly different format to the previous instalments - being purely a collection of letters from the first part of their courtship - so do tell me what you think! 
> 
> Adult!Phoebe and Caius are back by popular demand; though it does mean the whole sequence of the series has very much become of the non-linear variety; so if something doesn't make sense because of that, please do let me know. 
> 
> It's good to be back; and so, without, further ado, I give you Pearls and Cravats.
> 
> Enjoy.

 

Pearls and Cravats

 

* * *

 

_My Lady Phoebe,_

 

_Forgive my presumption in penning this missive; I hope I am not being too bold. Your pain moved me greatly, and I hope I was able to be of some small help, some small comfort to you, my lady. You are the finest of witches, and did not in any way deserve what was done to you. I know your brothers and your paterfamilias probably first claim, but you have only to ask and I would gladly be your champion._

 

_My motive in writing this was to ascertain your wellbeing - I pray thee, lady, are you feeling better? I have no wish to intrude, or to disturb, but I should like to call on you in the near future. Do not feel you must; you are in no way obligated to me._

 

_Yours sincerely,_

 

_Caius Trevelyan_

 

* * *

 

_My Lord Caius,_

 

_You have my deepest gratitude for your aid this afternoon. I - I was angry and humiliated, and you neither turned your back nor pitied me. I could not bear it if you pitied me - feel anything, even nothing, for me - except pity._

 

_If I may, my lord - I find you most impressive - but that is enough for now. My quill shakes in my hand and I can scarcely breathe. I can scarcely understand my own emotions; I must only hope that I am not burdening you with mine. I know I am young, but I am a Malfoy, and I will not be mocked._

 

_You have my gratitude, my lord; you have also earned yourself my respect, and my friendship - you may call on me whenever you wish._

 

_Yours in anticipation,_

 

_Phoebe Malfoy_

 

* * *

 

_My Darling,_

 

_My darling, my darling - you cannot know the joy it brings me to be able to speak those words aloud, to write them upon parchment where they shall be permanent - I was nervous as I joined you in my mother’s garden, and then I caught sight of you, darling, noble, wicked man, and I was no longer afraid. No, never of you, but I was unsure my attraction to you was reciprocated._

 

_The notion of being a prize, being coveted, being another Helen, an excuse for men to do with me what they wished has always unsettled me in a way that not even the substantial and extensive protections given to me by my House can mask. And then you proclaimed yourself mine, on your knees in the snow, and I was -_

 

_The sight of you steals my breath, my balance. The feel of your arms around mine steals my sanity, and I am overwhelmed. How does one live in such an exquisite, trembling state of happiness and joy and - the touch of your lips on mine and I am lost, and then found within you. The baritone of your voice slides over my skin like silk and I would worship you, my lord; I am yours, entirely, wholly, irrevocably yours, yours, yours alone. My heart, my body, my mind, my soul, my magic - I give it all to you. Freely._

 

_Your kiss, your gloved hands cradling my cheeks, the light and heat in your eyes, the strength in your arms, your voice in my ear, you are my world, you, you, you and no one else - how I am still coherent I cannot fathom - if this is what drowning is like, let me drown for ever._

 

_My darling, my lord, my love, Caius, in wanting me for myself, you have given me the greatest gift of all._

 

_Ever thine,_

_Phoebe_

 

* * *

 

_My Beauty,_

 

_I have not your sweet eloquence, and I am a very private man, but I shall endeavour to reply to these glorious missives of yours in a manner which does you and your words justice._

 

_Any man who thinks you merely a prize is not simply a fool; he is an idiot of the highest order. You are proud, my little witch, proud of your family and your history, proud of your magic, of your fiercely loyal and passionate heart - and as you should be, my beauty. You are wilful too, I know, and a Malfoy. Passion, pride and power could describe your whole line. But you are also generous and tender and honest with those whom you trust. I look at you and see secrets dancing in your laughing eyes; my hope is to know them, one day, you beguiling creature._

 

_Never lose your spirit, Phoebe - it would be an unforgivable crime. Let me say this, sweet one: the honour is all mine. That you have chosen me and not any other is - more than I ever dreamed. You humble me with your devotion. You awe me and move me to tears with your tenderness. Your kiss, my beauty, gives me life. Before you, your words of love, your sweet caress and even sweeter kiss, I existed, but I was not alive. With you all is so sharp, colours blinding in their definition, sensations drowning me in their power._

 

_My lady, my beauty, my witch, my Phoebe, you have my word, my heart, my magic and my sword._

_Ever thine,_

_Caius_

 

* * *

 

_My Darling,_

 

_Oh my darling - never doubt, you must never doubt - you are most eloquent, never doubt, never fear. If I move you to tears, you move me to such great weeping jags of joy that my brothers positively flee the room, leaving me in peace to peruse your beloved letters._

 

_We have scarcely finished our ride, you have just left the Manor, and already I feel I must write, I must keep some connection to you. You are the only man I have met, outside my family, who can not only keep up with me but challenge me. Racing you this morning, hearing your laugh - by Morgana, your laugh could enchant a growling bear and render it harmless, prostrate at your feet, and if this is blasphemy, that I should fall to my knees as you did for me, then I must blaspheme, again and again and again. That you laugh with me, because of me - the joy I feel curling, warming my entire being can never be surpassed. That you let me see past the mask of Lord Trevelyan that you must wear, that you trust me enough to let me see Caius, witty and honourable and tender and vulnerable - there is no higher compliment you can pay me - and I will always fight for you, fight by your side and protect that which you entrust me with._

 

_As the days pass and I learn more of you and you of me, I see only more things to admire about you. I do not say this to put you on a pedestal - you are as human as I - but in the hope that I may convey to you how much you have come to mean to me._

 

_There is no other - you, only you, always you, my darling._

 

_Ever thine,_

_Phoebe_

 

* * *

 

_My Beauty,_

 

_I can only be humbled and awed by the compliment of your devotion. Know that I return it completely, utterly, eternally. There is no other; not before, not now, not ever._

 

_You have been so patient; you do not turn away if I do not speak, because you understand that I am silent not because I wish to turn you away, but because what I feel is too much, sometimes, and because I have not cultivated the habit of disclosing my thoughts aloud._

 

_As the days pass I find it easier to speak to you; you have brought down the walls within my mind; but instead of razing them to rubble you have built a gate. It opens for you, and only you. My mind, my heart, my soul - I can hide nothing from you; I wish to hide nothing from you. You turn your silver gaze upon mine and you strip me of everything that is unimportant; you see only Caius._

 

_How nervous I was; how desirous I was that Caius should please you, not merely Lord Trevelyan!_

 

_I had heard of you; before we met - do you remember? We have been as ships in the night, passing, meeting upon occasion, before dancing away again, and now, at last, we have come together, properly. Your brothers had nothing but praise for you whilst I was at Hogwarts; I remember you coming to watch that Quidditch match when your grandfather His Grace the Duke decided you were old enough, at the precocious age of nine. I saw you only from afar, but knew you for a Malfoy, and knew you to be formidable, worthy of admiration indeed. And then we met again in Petra; you must have been around ten, and I was assigned, as the most junior Magical British diplomat in the area, to be your guide._

 

_Even then, you were enchanting. Your skill with horses - that episode with the unicorns is one I do not think I shall ever forget - the languages that fell like water, trilling effortlessly from your tongue, your delight amongst those ancient places, your sense of calm in the face of those kidnappers, the imperiousness that showed those men exactly with whom they were dealing. I believe I knew then that I would greatly anticipate making your acquaintance properly when you were of age._

 

_Forgive me these reminiscences; I have no wish to embarrass you, but you held my attention as no other ever has._

 

_I have been rather remiss in courting you properly, my lady Phoebe, in courting you as you deserve. My only defence (and it is admittedly poor) is that I could not see how this small token was an appropriate illustration of all that I feel for you._

 

_Let me be bold: my intentions are the most honourable._

 

_In anticipation of being once more in your presence, my beauty,_

_Ever thine,_

_Caius_

 

* * *

 

 

*attached to Lord Trevelyan’s owl, wrapped in the waxed, weather-repellent monogrammed cloth used to wrap parcels of importance, is a black lacquered box with a phoenix and white rose motif, and inside, upon a bed of black velvet and the petals of a pink damascus rose, is a delicate string of pearls fished in the magical waters of Atlantis, and they glow softly against the cream of Phoebe’s skin, a declaration to all that the Lady Phoebe has accepted a courtship*

 

* * *

 

 

_My Darling,_

 

_Even then? Do you know, I admired you as a child - how could I do anything but? You were so impressive, even then; with your elegant, assured bearing and calm voice. Never worry about embarrassing me; you could never. It is not within you to do so. I know you, Caius, my darling, and I could not be more delighted, more entranced, more - you bring me to the edge of all coherence. Petra, I believe, is where we began._

 

_The way you move, whether on foot, on the duelling stage, on horseback or in the air, bewitches me. I could look at you for ever and never be bored. You are a powerful wizard, my darling, but it is tempered by your elegant lines, by your well-mannered diplomacy. You have but to turn your eyes, your voice on me - and I am helpless._

 

_The Atlantean pearls are beautiful, and far more than I deserve; you spoil me, my darling. I have not seen Mama smile so radiantly as she did when I entered the orangery this morning to break my fast, and for that I must thank you from the bottom of my heart._ Paterfamilias _merely raised an eyebrow upon the discovery that they were Atlantean pearls; he is suitably impressed, and your gift has rendered my brothers silent, for once. My brothers have of course obliged me with their teasing, but I have seen the way Scorpius looks at Georgiana and I believe I may soon be able to enact my revenge in that arena._

 

_I have enclosed a small token of my own; it is my hope that the motif shall be to your liking._

 

_My_ paterfamilias _requires my presence upon the duelling stage before supper, so I must close here, my darling - but yes, call on me, call on me. I long for you, for your presence, your voice, your touch._

 

_Dream of me, as I will dream of you._

 

_Ever thine,_

_Phoebe_

 

* * *

 

 

_*_ the traditional response to the Lord’s first gift, the necklace, is a cravat embroidered by the Lady, embroidered with runes of protection, of good fortune and of wellbeing, and all of this hidden within ancestral motifs that render the gift-cravat more subtle; the greater the witch’s skill, the more hidden the runes*

 

* * *

 

**Author's Note:**

> I. the 'ever thine, ever mine, ever for each other' is originally from Beethoven's love letters, and I have never come across anything that can within a romantic context, surpass it, hence my shameless pilfering of it. I just think it's simply beautiful.
> 
> II. the tone of Caius & Phoebe's letters was something I found quite difficult to pin down; trying to walk that fine line between intensity and innocence for Phoebe, and intensity and propriety for Caius, so I hope you enjoyed them. 
> 
> III. the courting gifts are something I imagine fit very well within Pureblood Culture- above is merely my version of them; the gifts are a language within themselves, as are the flowers, and I think we'll see more of the use of specific flowers as Caius and Phoebe's relationship evolves. The pink damascus rose is used in this because it has personal significance to both Phoebe and Caius, as the flowers that grow within the Malfoy Persian garden, rather than any wider language of flowers resonance. Thus, the gifts - the necklace and the cravat mirror and complement each other. If anyone has any ideas for courting rituals, I'd be very grateful for the help. 
> 
> IV. I had to get a unicorn reference in there somehow, didn't I? I think I can safely say that the intricacies of Phoebe's affinity to them will definitely be explored in greater depth in the future.
> 
> Until next time!


End file.
